Hearts in the Wind is the Blog for Radiant Nursing - celebrating The Radiance Technique®. We cover an eclectic range of topics integrating TRT® into our lives. There's something for everyone.

This blog covers an eclectic range of topics for information, fun, and all the ups and downs of life. For students who have studied with me The First and/or The Second Degrees of The Radiance Technique® – there are suggestions for integrating TRT® into daily living. There's something for everyone.

Where the sirens sing and the church bells ringAnd the junkman pounds his fendersWhere the veterans dream of the fightFast asleep at the traffic light...

— The Pretender

No Sleeping At The Lights

Driving in the Pacific Northwest, the surrounding mountains reign over the lowlands. Their dignified mountaintops, especially when topped with snow caps, serve as a reminder that Valhalla shimmers above us.

Caught up in the harried business of the day, you swing around a corner and, for a moment, your breath catches when the mountains pop into view. For just that second, you hear the call and humming of the wide expanse of nature.

I often think of that line in Jackson Browne's song when I'm driving around in western Washington.

Veteran or not, there's no sleeping at the traffic lights here. The views are too good to be missed.

The Mountain Is Out

There's a saying in the Seattle area: "The Mountain is out" – it means the sky is clear enough to see Mt. Rainier. Given the rainfall and cloudy days in the area, this is an event worth noting among the natives.

According to Barry Popik’s etymological dictionary, The Big Apple, this phrase was referenced as long ago as August 1951 in a syndicated column in a newspaper from Illinois, the Registered-Republic:

When Seattle folk can see Mount Rainier... the common phrase is, Oh, look: the mountain is out today.

— Bennet Cerf, 1951

A Mountain Greets You

On a clear day in one mountain town, Mt. Rainier welcomes you at the traffic light.

It's one of the rare times you hope that you'll get stopped at a red light, just so you can drink in the scenery.

When Smoke Fills The Sky

In the summer of 2017, a smoky haze from the wildfires in British Columbia drifted over Washington State. The mountains were obliterated from view.

If you were seeing it for the first time, you'd think there were no mountains.

For those of us used to seeing The Mountain as we drive into town, it was unsettling for it to suddenly be invisible.

A 12,000 foot mountain erased.

Below, same intersection, no hint of a mountain (no filter, no Photoshop).

The mountain is supposed to only disappear behind the clouds.

With the smoke from the wildfires, The Mountain wasn't out even though we had no cloud cover. A massive volcano had vanished, beamed into another dimension.

If you didn't know a mountain was supposed to be there, you'd never have been the wiser.